Kōrero ā Rohe
LOCAL INFORMATION
TONGARIRO SHUTTLES
Summit – (Dana) 021 784 202 https://www.summitshuttles.co.nz
Summit Shuttles offers convenient pick-ups from Whakapapa Holiday Park. When booking online, please specify in the comments: 'PICK UP FROM WHAKAPAPA HOLIDAY PARK.' Even if your confirmation mentions meeting at National Park, rest assured they will collect you from Whakapapa Holiday Park (front lawn). If you book there 5.45am shuttle you will need to drive to there yard. This time is not pick up at the park.
ACTIVE OUTDOOR ADVENTURES AND BACKYARD TOURS ARE ONE WAY FROM KETETAHI TO THE START OF THE TONGARIRO CROSSING. You drive to the end of the crossing (30mins away from our campground) One of these companies will pick you up and drive you to the start of the crossing. You will then be able to walk as fast as you like or as slow as you like to your own car.
Active Outdoor Adventures (Trina 027 228 4831) https://www.activeoutdooradventures.co.nz
Backyard Tours (Gloria) 022 314 2656 www.backyardtours.com
INFORMATION IN WHAKAPAPA VILLAGE
Ma & Mels Coffee Cart - This is located outside the Tussock Bar
ISITE /DOC office for parking permits for the great walks 07 8923 729
Skotel Restaurant – Dinner reservations 07 8923 719
Tongariro National Park
The mountains at the heart of the national park have cultural and spiritual significance to the local iwi (tribe) Ngāti Tūwharetoa and symbolise the spiritual links between this community and their environment.
Tongariro National Park has active and extinct volcanoes, a diverse range of ecosystems and spectacular landscapes.
1880-1890s
The Crown sought to establish a National Park around Tongariro maunga (mountain).
In 1887, the generosity and foresight of the Ngāti Tūwharetoa people saw the heart of the mountainous area being made sacrosanct, with the intent that the Crown would stand alongside them to ensure the continued protection of Tongariro.
The Ariki (Chief) of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Horonuku te Heuheu Tukino IV enacted a tuku (an act of customary lore) of the three volcanic peaks (Tongariro, Ngauruhoe, Ruapehu) to protect and preserve the mountains for Ngāti Tūwharetoa, other iwi (tribes) and all New Zealanders. The intention of the tuku was to enter into a partnership with the Crown, at the time Queen Victoria of England, to ensure the continued protection of Tongariro.
By 1894, legal ownership of the sacred mountain peaks increased significantly from the original 2,640 hectare tuku into a 79,596 hectare surrounding area vested solely in the Crown. This act by the Crown began a process whereby the authority of Ngāti Tūwharetoa over the taonga (treasured heritage) in the Tongariro National Park being greatly reduced.
1990s
In 1993, Tongariro National Park was inscribed on the World Heritage List under the revised criteria describing cultural landscapes – the first in the world to hold Dual World Heritage classification.